Press Release
October 9, 2008

'1-peso rollback by Big 3 an insult'--Kiko

Senate Majority Leader and independent senator Kiko Pangilinan today called the one-peso rollback by the Big 3 oil companies "an insult."

"It feels more like a pathetic handout than a genuine gesture given that the global crude price has gone down by as much as six dollars. Do they expect us to be grateful when it is obvious that they are still taking advantage of the situation? They keep giving us excuses. Filipinos know simple mathematics. Bakit ba inuunti-unti pa nila tayo? Nakakainsulto na sila," said Kiko.

Seaoil Philippines Inc. beat the Big 3 (Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp., Petron Corp. and Chevron Philippines Inc.) by two hours when it lowered its prices at 10 PM on Wednesday. The seemingly unified move came immediately after consistent calls for pump prices to reflect the plummeting of crude value.

Global prices have fallen by 40% since crude reached a dramatic peak of $150 per barrel in July. Even so, local oil companies have been hesitant in declaring rollbacks. Many suspected they were using the government's re-imposition of the one-percent tariff last week as an excuse to maintain current prices. The one-peso slash was declared right on the heels of angered demands from government officials.

"Based on studies by civic organizations, these companies owe us an immediate rollback of seven pesos. But, here they are giving us a token one-peso rollback. Gusto yata nila eh magtatalon pa ang taumbayan sa pisong ibinaba ng gasolina, gayong garapalan naman kung pagkakakitaan nila tayo. They should be ashamed of themselves. Maybe the problem is that they forget theirs is primarily a service industry and not big business. Mahiya naman po kayo. Give us the kind of rollback we deserve," Kiko insisted.

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